2000 miles
by MamaBearMayhem
Summary: A two part follow up to Its just a little crush'. Follow Charlotte Salvatore and Klaus Mikaelson six years after the end of their story. Part two coming soon.


**Hello guys. I wrote this just before Christmas but didn't find time to post it until now. A part two will be coming some point soon. This is a short follow up to Its just s little crush'. **

Snowflakes fell softly and gathered on the window ledge. Inside the house, fire blazing and hot tea sitting in the mug next to her, Charlotte Salvatore-Mikaelson sat at the desk with a pen in her hand as she stared at the divorce papers. Her hand hovered over the pile of inconspicuous papers that would end her marriage as she contemplated whether or not to sign.

* * *

2000 miles away, Klaus Mikaelson downed his glass of whiskey and glared menacingly at his own set of divorce papers. He was stood to one side, staring out at the vast expanse of his living room and hating the sight of it. It was too big. Too empty. Too… lonely.

* * *

Christmas day was to be a quiet event for Charlotte. Her family, however, had other plans as she soon discovered when her oldest brother, Damon, appeared on her doorstep. His face held a smirk and his shoulders and jet black hair were littered with snow. As he brushed it off, he crossed the threshold into his sister's home and greeted her with a hug and a raise of his eyebrows.

"What are you doing here, Damon? Shouldn't you be with Elena and Alex?"

"Did you really think I was going to let you spend Christmas alone?"

Charlotte waved away her brother and bent down to pick up the bag of presents for her oldest nephew; another sat next to it for Stefan's young son, William. Handing the gold and red gift bag to Damon, she pursed her lips when she spotted him staring at her round belly.

"Don't, Damon."

With a grimace, Damon rubbed at the scruff on his jaw and criticized his only sister. "Have you told him yet?"

Turning her back on her brother, Charlotte grabbed her purse, handbag, and scarf from the sofa and tied the cream, fluffy material around her neck. She felt Damon grab her by the wrist and twist her around to face him. Pouting, she refused to look at him and kept her focus on the wooden floor she was standing on.

"Charlotte! He deserves to know."

"I don't need a lecture right now, Damon!"

"If he knew, he would be here." He argued, knowing how much both his sister and friend were hurting at their separation.

"You think so? Huh? Why? Because you talk to him like once a month? Because you think you know what we went through?" The raven haired woman cried, anger bubbling out of her.

"No! Because I'm a father and if it were me I would want to know!" He reached out to his sister only to have her bat his hands away. "Listen, what you two went through… I can never understand exactly how you feel but that man loves you. He would do anything for you. Just tell him."

Snapping, Charlotte stormed over to the coffee table in front of her grey, fabric sofa and snatched up the divorce papers that had arrived a week before. Pushing them into her brother's chest, she glared up at him and felt her heart break.

"He's divorcing me."

His blue eyes bulging, Damon stared open mouthed at the woman in front of him and slowly began to shake his head. Closing her eyes, Charlotte let out a heavy sigh and with a much gentler voice, she apologised to her brother.

"I was on my way to the cemetery… if you want to come."

Clutching the papers in his hand, Damon looked from them to Charlotte before pulling her into him and hugging her tightly. He stroked her mass of midnight sky coloured curls and told her he loved her.

"I have time." He stated simply, following the woman out of her home.

They walked in the snow. Flakes crunched beneath their feet and their breathes clouded the air around them. As they tackled the small hill that led to the gates of the cemetery, Charlotte placed a gloved hand on her coat. Underneath her fingers she could feel the growing bump. A small kick vibrated through her ribs and she smiled. Her miracle baby was saying hello.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Charlotte replied, grateful to reach the end of the hill, as she pried open the gates and traversed through the mass gravestones. A few mourners were dotted about, some with flowers, some with small children as they talked quietly to the marble and stone graves. Coming to a stop at a hedge in the far corner of the cemetery, Charlotte bent down low and brushed a thick layer of snow off the plaque and said a quiet hello.

"Hi, baby."

Inside of her, her unborn child kicked once more. In front of her, her dead child lived in a tiny coffin six feet under the frozen ground; a child who had died before it had even been born. Flashes of the car accident still haunted to the day. There were still nights where she woke and could feel the bite of cold, jagged metal cutting into her stomach. She had been just as pregnant as she was in that moment. One thing Charlotte did know for certain, though, was that this child would reach its due date in three months time.

"I can't believe how long it's been…" Damon mumbled, lamenting on how fast time seemed to go when they were busy living their lives.

Six years had passed since the death of her unborn child. It had signalled the slow demise of her relationship with Klaus too. The accident, which Klaus blamed himself for, had left Charlotte with an empty womb and only one working ovary. They had tried for years to conceive; had almost wiped out their savings trying to make their dream come true. In the end, all they had done was turn their relationship into a bitter, toxic sham of a marriage. The child inside of her was a surprise. One conceived on the night herself and Klaus had agreed to separate and had sought comfort in one another one last time. Of course she had wanted to tell Klaus the moment she had discovered she was pregnant… but then her past prevented her from doing so. What if this child did not live? She could not put the man she loved through that again when she had already failed so many times to give him the child he desperately wanted. So she had waited and still continued to wait. She had to be sure. That was, until the divorce papers had landed on her doorstep and suddenly, she had no intention of telling Klaus. This baby was her miracle. Not his.

A warm tear slid down her cheek and Charlotte wiped it away discreetly before her oldest brother could see. Clearing her throat, she rose to her full height and gave him a sad smile. Her visit was brief but it was all she could manage. Seeing the pity in his eyes, she patted him on the shoulder and agreed to spend the day with him and his family. After all, Christmas day was for being with those you love.


End file.
